Nelius h



(No Model.)

T. J. RIDER.'

HOT AIR ENGINE.

Patented Nov. 27, 1333.

Iliff/Iliff Www/@.55 es UNITED" STATES PATENT Ormea@ THOMAS J. RIDER, OFNEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR OF ONEHALF TO OOR- NELIUS H. DE LAMATER,GEORGE H. ROBINSON, AND WILLIAM DE LA- MATER, ALL OF SAME PLACE.

HOT-AIR ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 393,723, dated November27, 1888.

Application filed December 22, 1887. Serial No. 258,670.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, THoMAs J. RIDER, of the city and county of New York,and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement inHot-Air Engines, of which the following is a speciication.

My invention relates to single-cylinder closed cycle hotairengines-such, for example, as the Ericsson engine, shown and describedin ro Letters Patent No. 226,052, dated March 30,

1880. In that engine there is a downward prolongation of the cylinderwhich constitutes the i air heater, and in the cylinder and heater worka motor-piston and a transfer-piston. This x 5 transfer-piston is nottight within the cylinder or heater, and as it rises the air above itand between it and the power-piston is caused to pass downward betweenthe transfer-piston and the wall of the cylinder to the heater, and

zo is by the upward movement of such piston transferred from thecylinder downward to the heater. In the operation of such an engine theair passes downward in a thin film around the transfer-piston, and as itis thus held or maintained in such thin lm directly in contact with thewall of the heater, the heat is very effectively applied to it. In suchengine as heretofore made, however, the air as soon as it reaches thelower end of the transfer-piston escapes directlyinto the internal spaceof the heater, and as the piston rises it is obvious that the air isheld in contact with the wall of the heater for a less and less period,and the point at which the air escapes from the. confined space betweenthe transfer-piston and the wall of the heater into the internal spaceof the heater gradually rises as the piston makes its ascent.

It is obvious that the heat is not so readily 4o transmitted to the airwhen it is maintained in considerable volume within the heaterspace asit is while the air is passing downward through the thin or confinedspace between the transfer-piston and the wail of the heater.

In order that in an airengine of the kind above described the air in itstransfer from above to below the transfer-piston may have Aduring thewhole stroke of the piston the (No model.)

reaches the bottom of the heater at all times and during the wholelength of stroke of the piston, a sleeve or lining-piece has beenaplplied within the heater.

My invention consists in the novel construction of this sleeve orlining-piece and its novel combination with the cylinder, the heater,

and the piston, as hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l represents a vertical section ofthe Ericsson engine embodying my invention; and Fig. 2 is a plan of alining-piece or sleeve which I introduce within the heater.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in bothfigures.

A designates the cylinder of the engine, which is surrounded by awater-jacket, A', and B designates the heater which forms a downwardprolongation of the cylinder proper A, and is represented as madeseparate from the cylinder and secured thereto by bolts a, forming ailanged joint.

O designates the motor-piston which works within the cylinder A, and Ddesignates the transfer-piston, whereby air which is aboveit and betweenit and the motor-piston C is by the rising movement of thetransfer-piston D caused to pass downward around the transferpiston andinto the heater B, where it receives fresh caloric. The connectionsthrough which the motor-piston G and the transfer-piston D operate maybe the same as in the Ericsson patent above referred to, and no specialdescription of these parts is necessary. AS clearly shown,thetransfer-piston D does notfit tightly the cylinder A, and in theseengines as heretofore made the air above the transferpiston as thetransfer-piston rises is forced down the annular space surrounding thetransfer-piston, and as soon as it reaches the bottom of the pistonescapes into the internal space of the heater B.

It is obvious that as the piston D rises, the point at which the airescapes from confinement between its circumference and the wall of theheater rises correspondingly, and therefore as the piston rises the airhas a graduallydecreasing travel in direct contact with the wall of theheater l).

To produce a uniform healing ofthe downwardly-flowing air during theentire upward stroke of the transl'cr-] iiston there is pro vided in theheater B the cylindrical liningpiece or sleeve E, which forms betweenthe wall of the heater and the sleeve an annular space, e. At the upperend of this lining-piece or sleeve is au internal flange which ts snuglyto and steadily guides the transferpistomand the said lining-piece isalso furnished at its upper end with external lugs or projections, c,which lit within the heater B in such manner as to center the saidsleeve or lining-piece in the heater and the cylinder A, butto leavebetween the said lugs. or projections a free passage for air at theupper end of such sleeve or lining-piece, as shown at 6"'. The said annular space e thus opens at its upper end, c2, directly to the annular'space between the transfer-piston D and the wall of the cylinder A, andopens at its lower end at the point e into the internal space of theheater. As the pis l) rises the air is forced downward around it, and,entcringthe open top c of the annular space c, flows down such annularspace and is Iinally delivered at the open bottom e thereof. As thepiston D rises the lining-piece orsleeve remains stationary,andconsequently it inaintains the full and equal length ofthe annularpassage e during the entire rising movement of the piston.

It will be observed that by providing the lining-piece E with theinternal liange,c',to lit the piston D the said lining-piece may be madelarge enough internally for the rest ol its length to he entirely clearfrom the said piston as air entering the said lining-piece at thebottoni can do no harm provided it cannot pass between the piston andthe upper end of said lining-piece. The lugs or projections on theexterior of the liningpieee c are re eeivcd in the rabbet b in the upperend of the heater B, and are clalnpedin the joint between the heater andthe cylinder A to hold the liningpiecc in place.

What I claim as my inrcntioinaud desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-n 1.`The combination, with the cylinder, the air-heater, and thetransferpiston,of the liningpiece or sleeve provided with an internalflange around its upper end to fit the trans fer-piston and centeredrelatively to the airheater. substantially as herein described.

2. The combination, with the cylinder A. the heater lnnade separate fromand secured to the lower end of the cylinder, and the power and transferpistons C D,ol` the liningpiece or sleeve E, having at the upper endlat.- elallyprojecti ngl ugs or earswhich are clamped in thejointbetween the cylinder and heater, said lining piece or sleeve beingfitted to'tlie transfer-piston, and forming between it and the wall ofthe heater the annular air passage c, substantially as herein described.

XVitnesscs:

C. C. Carus, HARRY lf. LY'rLn.

